How are Essential Oils made? Essential Oils are made by extracting the fragrant and medicinal liquids in a plant. Essential Oils can be derived from the seeds, roots, bark, stems and leaves of a plant as well as the fruit and flowers. Quality essential oils are extracted using one of three main methods: Effleurage, Steam Distillation and Expression.

The Effleurage method is a rare but important technique. It is the only method for extracting oils from delicate plants, such as Rose and Jasmine. Effleurage involves laying flower petals on a sheet of glass that has been spread with a thin layer of fat. When enough fragrance has been soaked up, the fatty matter is rinsed in alcohol, a process that allows the essential oils to detach from the fat. When the alcohol evaporates, the result is a pure and potent essential oil!

Steam Distillation is how most essential oils are made. Bits of plant are laid on a porous dish above boiling water. The rising stem releases essential oils from the plant material and the oils are then carried by the steam into a cooling pot. As the steam and oil mixture cools, the essential oil and water naturally separate. The essential oil, pure and undiluted, gets syphoned off into a bottle and the result is a clean, refreshing product!

The Expression method of extraction is the last comme method for making essential oils. Expression is often used to extract oils from the rinds of fruit, like Grapefruit Oil, Yuzu Oil, Orange Oil and Lemon Oil. Essential Oils from these fruits are derived using a cold-pressed technique, where the oil is squeezed out of the fruit with pressure. This is one of the easiest and inexpensive methods for producing essential oils. It’s also one of the cleanest and most effective!

At RainShadow Labs, we source oils that have been manufactured using the techniques needed to produce the highest quality oils on an individual basis. That means we source oils extracted in different manners based on what each plan needs to realize its highest expression. As a result, each of our Wholesale Essential Oils is vibrant and pure because it was coaxed out in the way that was best for it!